Untitled,from Playgrounds for Manhattan, 1938 by Eliot Elisofon

Untitled,from Playgrounds for Manhattan, 1938 by Eliot Elisofon

 

 

 

 

            Unlike some of the other photographs I’ve chosen, I selected “Untitled” mostly due to its interesting form, rather than the content. The image depicts a young man or boy sitting on a strikingly large concrete structure. The boy sits, perhaps uncomfortably, with a pensive pose.  It is unlike anything I’ve seen before. It appears that he’s on some sort of beach or even a desert due to the sand-like earth the structure sits on. Behind him, in the dark is a collection of buildings that at a glance could be a hill. The sky above him is an ominous gray. Although there are clearly clouds visible, the lack of light makes it difficult to judge what the weather or time was actually like.

            As mentioned before, the form of the photo makes it stand out. Even though the image is relatively dark, there is a stark contrast between the lights and darks. The concrete structure that dominates the image has an appealing geometric symmetry to it. Its smooth curves and sharp angles form together nicely. On top of that, the darkness of a shadow cuts through the shape and onto the sand. The additional lines of contrast only add to the appealing geometry. The buildings in the background are so dark that they lack almost any identifying features. The photo, without context could take place anywhere.

 Although the (lack of) title doesn’t give any clues as to what the photograph is showing, the other information given by TIME.com gives a few hints. TIME says that the photo is from Playgrounds for Manhattan and was taken in 1938. That one sentence of information unlocks a load of information and answers several questions. While the boy’s outfit is hard to discern, it makes complete sense given the time period. The field of sand is no desert, it’s a playground. Those buildings in the background are part of Manhattan. The availability of such a large space and the lack of skyscrapers in Manhattan make sense again given the time period.

David Kirby on his deathbed, Ohio, 1990-Therese Frare

 David Kirby on his deathbed, Ohio, 1990-Therese Frare

 

             I found “David Kirby on his deathbed, Ohio, 1990” by Therese Frare on LIFE.com. The image is particularly striking one. As its title suggests, the image depicts a man, David Kirby, literally on his death bed. He is surrounded by his family, yet his expression seems to be completely void of any recognition. He looks hollow, gaunt, and morbid. His father is comforting him, although it doesn’t appear that David is even conscious, and his mother and sister embrace each other.

            Of all the images I’ve picked so far, this is probably the most powerful. The back-story to it makes it even more powerful. David Kirby was an gay-rights activist who contracted HIV. He reconciled with his estranged family, in order to die surrounded by his loved one. His final picture captured this. He was only 32 years old. I’m struck by the amount of intimacy the photo captures. There can be few things as private and precious as someone passing away with their families, yet we are fortunate enough to share this moment with them. It captures the sorrow and hopelessness of the situation. His family looks utterly devastated, but the person dying is completely devoid of emotions we might expect.

            The picture also does a lot to capture the essence of the AIDS epidemic. Although the image was taken just 25 years ago, medicine has increased magnitudes. In just a few short years after this photo was taken, antivirals would be developed which allow people to live indefinitely with AIDS (which used to be a death sentence). The picture does a lot to bring how terrible the disease is. It looks as if Kirby had his life sucked out of him, and that he was a shell of the person he used to be. Regardless of one’s views on the gay community, an image like this is powerful enough to make everyone agree that no one deserves a demise such as David Kirby’s.  

Members of the Bedouin "camel cavalry," Syria, 1940 by Margaret Bourke-White

 

Members of the Bedouin "camel cavalry," Syria, 1940 by Margaret Bourke-White

I located “Members of the Bedouin "camel cavalry," Syria, 1940” by Margaret Bourke-White on the twitter page of LIFE magazine. I chose this photo mostly for its form, although its content is still interesting. Because most of the title was unfamiliar to me, I looked it up. A Bedouin is a nomad and the “camel cavalry” is a designation for a group or militia that travels by camel. Looking at the photo, this is all rather apparent.

            The photo depicts a row of the stoic Bedouins atop their camels. Each Bedouin is dressed uniquely, yet they’re all wearing typical dress for that region of the world. The presence of the camels over horses causes a slight confusion at first because I’m less familiar with camel riding, but it makes sense given the location the picture was taken.

            The straight line the Bedouins are in provides an interesting frame for the photo. Because of the angle it was taken, they appear to go off almost forever, with each successive person being farther from the picture (and therefore smaller). Also, because the camels didn’t stay (completely) still during the picture, it appears there is a slight motion blur cause by it. The picture captures in time an animal’s nature to keep moving.

            After a little more research the photo intrigues me because there’s very little information available about it. Obviously given the time period and location, we can assume there was turmoil going on during the photo, but not much else can be extracted. Were these men going to defend their homeland from an invader? Did they die in combat?  The article on LIFE.com doesn’t provide much information either, but it does draw a parallel to the situation going on in Syria currently. By drawing the parallel, it becomes easy to imagine a group of Syrians lined up in their own cars ready to defend their homeland in some manner.